Journal

We are very excited to now be stocked in a wonderful lifestyle store, Little Smiths, in our local market town of Fakenham. Fakenham is about 15 minutes away from the farm, so we are really excited that our products are now being stocked there as we love being a part of local shops and business'.

Hi Mikey, thank you so much for joining us and taking your time to chat to us about your wonderful NEW shop.

SO first of all please tell us a little bit about Little Smiths...Little Smiths is a independent lifestyle store. We source out local products from some very talented individuals. The store is a platform for local makers and for customers to find something unique. We also try to be eco friendly by finding reusable products.

What a fantastic concept, definitely a shop that we are so happy to be a part of. Where did the idea come from to start Little Smiths? The idea came out of the blue! I have always wanted my own store but I didn’t know what I wanted in it. My husband was the one who pushed me into opening he always drives me and supports me. I wanted to help others in the process so supporting local makers really means a lot to me.

What a wonderful way to do it, it always fantastic as a local producer to have such wonderful platforms to showcase your work. Had you always dreamt of opening your own shop?Yes originally I wanted a vintage clothing store and almost opened one but i didn’t have the confidence in the idea. I worked previously as a gift buyer for a very big company, I had a passion for gifts and homeware so set my idea on that sector instead.

As you know all of our products are designed by Izzi and manufactured in the UK, is this something you feel passionate about?Very much so! There’s so much talented that’s not being shown in the uk it’s so nice to find unique items instead of a generic import that’s made in a factory.

We completely agree! As you said you source locally for your products, how much of the shop is from local designers?90% of the stock in the shop is made by local makers. Stocking Norfolk based products was always my aim and show off what the local talent has to offer.

You have a wonderful selection of products in your shop- where do you tend to source a lot of these from?As above most of our products are sourced from the Norfolk area but I do outsource selected items from different areas of the country if I find unique handmade items.

​What first drew your attention to IzziRainey products? The bold patterns are definitely eye catching and for me that’s what sold them. But I also love the background story of how you started and the fact you are a local maker.

What is your favourite IzziRainey product?Ooo this is a hard one! It would have to be the black dandelion designon a cushion! I will definitely be having them in my home!

​Ah that is one of our favourites too! Please tell us a little bit about Fakenham where the shop is...are other independent shops popping up there too?My store stands alone on one of the main streets into Fakenham (Oak Street) it use to be a fruit and veg shop and I just instantly fell in love with the building! There is me and one other independent store which is Through the looking glass. She specialises in shabby chic furniture and is definitely worth a visit for something unique!

​How fantastic, it is always great to see new independent shops opening. And finally...if you had to describe your perfect day in Norfolk...what would it be doing?My perfect day sounds boring but I would spend it in the garden with my husband and my 9 tortoises! I’m a bit of a tortoise addict!

Sounds perfect, especially in this wonderful weather. Thank you so much Mikey for joining us. Please make sure you pop into Little Smiths if you are ever nearby, they just have the most fantastic selection of British made products and IzziRainey products too of course...what more could you want! https://www.facebook.com/Littlesmithsfakenham/?ref=br_rs